A Long Journey
by LupisFidelis
Summary: This is a tale of hardship. A record of the struggles that one adventurer pushed through to explore her world and to save those that she cared for. (Not a romance...currently)
1. Danger?

**A/N  
** Disclaimer: I don't own any of the LOTR characters, wish I did.  
This is my first story, but I put a lot of time into what I have thus far.  
Please tell me what you think. Constructive criticism welcomed.

It was a beautiful winter day. The air was clear and the sky was a serene blue. Yet this peaceful scene was interrupted by a noise. A sharp gasp repeated every few seconds. If you could peer through the trees and had vision as sharp as an eagle's, you would see a small girl with chocolate brown hair and light grey eyes. She was young; at most sixteen or seventeen. She was breathing hard as if she had just run a great distance.

Suddenly there was a large crash to the girl's left. Her head snapped up and her breathing stilled. She examined the area where the sound had originated. She looked like a frightened deer; aware there is danger but unsure of whether she should run or remain still.

* * *

Two Days Later:

The slender girl was traveling through a forest on the back of a chestnut horse. She heard running water nearby. Turning towards the sound she spurred her horse forward. The source of the sound was quickly discovered to be a small stream fed by a clear spring.

The girl dismounted and led her steed toward the stream for a quick rest. Stiff, she crouched down to drink from the stream, her eyes never stopped scanning the trees before her while she dipped her hand in the stream bringing the water up to her lips. She tensed just slightly and her eyes slide to the right. Other than these movements there was no outward sign that she had noticed anything. She stood casually, a nearly imperceptible smirk on her face.

"You've gotten sloppy," she proclaimed aloud. It seemed as if she was talking to the trees around her. Three elves jumped down from the trees to her right, and one man came from behind the trunk of another.

"I told you she would notice," said the man.

He had a sense of grace about him. His eyes were a silvery gray and his hair was the same shade of brown as the girl. He wore a light green tunic and had the beginnings of a beard. Around his waist was a leather belt with a sword and dagger attached to it. He was about four years older than she was.

Two of the elves were dressed similarly to the man. They both had dark hair and silver-gray eyes. The only differences were the bows slung over their shoulders and the double daggers strapped to their backs.

The last elf was blonde and wore a darker green tunic than the other three. His eyes, instead of gray were a beautiful blue. He was armed only with a bow and quiver full of arrows.

"I think that you gave us away, Elrohir," said one of the brown-haired elves.

"Oh, of course. It couldn't possibly be you, oh, perfect one," said Elrohir.

"Elrohir, Elladan, can't you do this another time? We are trying to welcome a friend we have not seen in a very long time," reasoned the blonde elf.

Both Elladan and Elrohir grumbled but agreed to hold off their bickering for the sake of the friend that they had just been reunited with.

"You never change," stated the girl with a slight smile on her face. "Why did you come all the way out here to meet me? It's still a day and a half journey to Rivendell," asked the girl.

"Well, Fidelis, you see, we had a very important question to ask you," stated Elrohir in a grandiose fashion.

"Oh?"

"Yes, we wanted to ask you…who do you like the most?" finished Elrohir with a devilish smile on his face.

The others shouted in unison, "What?! That wasn't the question!"

Fidelis' face was dusted with a faint blush. Legolas, Elladan, and Estel all blustered with embarrassment.

"What type of question is that? I like all of you equally, Elrohir," stated Fidelis in a calm, even voice.

"You're no fun, Fidelis," grumbled Elrohir.

"Let's continue on. I don't want Ada sending out a search party because we are three hours late again," interceded Elladan

Fidelis remounted her horse. The three elves and man walked beside her steed for a time until they reached the place where they had left their horses. The five traveled on to Rivendell, the four filling in the new arrival on all the happenings of the Elven world.


	2. Catching Up

The sky was beginning to darken and the sun was beginning to fade when they tackled the decision of whether to continue traveling or to rest for the night.

"Should we continue on?" asked Estel.

"You all are familiar with the terrain, right?" questioned Fidelis.

"Yes and no," replied Elladan and Elrohir in unison.

Elladan continued, "We know the terrain but not well enough to travel by star and moonlight only."

"Then we stop," stated Fidelis in a matter-of-fact manner.

"Do you always make everything so black and white?" laughed Estel.

"Why make it more complicated?" questioned Fidelis

"For someone who has traveled so extensively, you take a rather simple view of the world," said Legolas. Fidelis hmphed grouchily. The other four laughed while Fidelis pouted.

They dismounted, Estel got to work starting a fire, Elladan, Elrohir and Legolas unloaded their camping gear from the horses and removed the saddles and bridles. Fidelis, taking a deep breath, dismounted, winced slightly, and began to remove her horse's gear. After freeing her horse from its burden, she walked over to Estel, who had started to prepare dinner. She wondered, "What are you making?"

"Just some soup," he answered.  
"Hmm,"

Fidelis wandered over to the other four horses, one bay, two dapples, and one paint. She stroked the forehead of the paint murmuring softly to him in elvish.

"He's beautiful, isn't he?" said Legolas from behind her.

She turned to face him, a faint smile on her face, "Yes, he is."

Legolas frowned slightly. "Are you okay?"

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"You answered a question with a question. You are stalling."

"Maybe, but you still haven't answered my question."

"Answer mine first."

"I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"I don't believe you."

"It's not my problem if you believe me or not."

She walked past Legolas and rejoined the sons of Elrond at the fire. Legolas followed her and sat beside Elladan and Elrohir.

"So where have you been traveling this time?" asked Estel.

"I went East and South. Visited some old friends, and made some new ones. I met some really nice Haradrim people, but I also met some not so nice ones," answered Fidelis

"Really? Normally, you get along with just about everyone, even the strangest creatures and people, orcs excluded of course" Elladan teased.

"Yes, I cannot imagine you rubbing people the wrong way," said Legolas jokingly.

Fidelis looked at Legolas, making eye contact.

Rolling her eyes, "Not everybody can be a perfect diplomat, Legolas."

They continued eating while Fidelis regaled them with story after story of her month-long journey. She told them about the strange bird-like creature that had followed her for most of her journey, and about the cutest set of baby badgers that she had rescued from a flooding stream. After the four had finished eating, they traded jobs. They told her about everything that had happened while she was away. She learned all about the twins' pranks and the victims. She also learned about the happenings of Mirkwood from Legolas.

After finishing the meal Estel collected the bowls and took them to a nearby stream to wash. Elladan, Elrohir, and Legolas all looked at Fidelis expectantly. She ignored the expectant looks and stood to find a place to sleep.

"Good night," she said.

"Going to bed already?" Elrohir and Elladan questioned in unison.

"Yeah" one of Fidelis' hand drifted closer to her abdomen, "I'm really tired and sore."

They did not sleep but continued talking long into the night. Fidelis continued walking for some time until she found a tree that suited her needs. She climbed up into it and slept on one of the branches.


	3. Safe at Last

It was obvious the next morning that winter was on its way. The ground was covered with a light frost and there was a slight nip in the air. Fidelis woke just before the sun had breached the horizon and sat up slowly wincing at the pain in her back and abdomen.

"I knew something was wrong," stated a voice from her left.

She turned quickly, startled by the sudden proclamation, and saw Legolas. He was perched on a branch slightly behind her and to her left. She had to turn a full one hundred and eighty degrees to look him in the eye, which cause the pain in her back and abdomen to intensify. Resisting the urge to wince she addressed Legolas.

"What do you want, Legolas?" she asked crossly.

"I want to make sure that my stubborn friend is okay," he replied with sarcasm mingled with concern in his voice. "Or do you normally wince when you get up in the morning?"

"I was in the saddle all day yesterday, of course I'm a little sore," Fidelis tried reasoning with her protective and observant friend.

Legolas was not fooled. They were interrupted by Elladan calling them for breakfast. Both Legolas and Fidelis turned towards the sound of his voice. Then their eyes met once more.

"Let's just go eat breakfast, all right? I'll explain after." sighed Fidelis.

"If that is what you desire," replied Legolas.

Fidelis jumped down from the branch she was on, onto the frosted ground. Her feet made a slight crunch when they landed. Behind her, she heard a similar sound as Legolas landed, albeit quieter. She didn't turn but started walking towards Estel, Elrohir, and Elladan for a much-needed breakfast.

Breakfast that morning was fruit, day-old bread from Rivendell, and water. Of course, day-old bread from Rivendell is better than fresh bread from anywhere else. Fidelis thoroughly enjoyed the meal. It was reasonably larger than anything else she had had recently. Although, she would have enjoyed it more if Legolas would stop staring at her.

Finally, Estel asked Legolas, "Why are you staring at Fidelis?"

This caused Elrohir and Elladan to look up. They had been focused on their food and hadn't noticed until Estel had said something. Legolas looked at Estel, and then at Elladan and Elrohir.

"She promised me an explanation that I am patiently waiting for," he replied indignantly.

"An explanation?" Estel asked.

"Yes," Legolas replied shortly.

"Very well," sighed Fidelis, "I didn't want to tell you because it is slightly embarrassing, but if you are going to make not knowing such big deal, I'll just tell you."

Elladan started to interrupt but a slight nudge from Elrohir's elbow stopped him. Fidelis took a deep breath and began her story.

"I decided to travel around to the south and east this time. I was going through one of the peaceful Haradrim camps when I noticed that the people living there had no light in their eyes. They were going about their business as if everything was normal, but the smiles were fake. They were even afraid of me, and I am well known with the Haradrim.

Eventually, I found the source of the fear in their eyes. A man named Mikome (Mi-ko-mee) had completely taken over all the Haradrim tribes in the area. I wanted to free the tribes from the oppression that this man brought so I challenged him to a duel according to Haradrim tradition. Mikome decided that it would be much easier to ignore tradition and simply have me captured, tortured, and executed as an example. They managed to capture me, but I was able to escape before they had fully carried out their orders."

As soon as she had finished her last sentence a look of concern leapt into the eyes of all four of her friends. Fidelis held up her hand to assuage their fears, an appreciative smile on her face.

"While I did sustain a few injuries, none of them are life-threatening, I promise. And I also promise that when we get back to Rivendell, I'll allow Lord Elrond to examine me."

None of them were happy about that arrangement, but they all knew how stubborn Fidelis could be when she set her mind to it. Grudgingly, they agreed to let the matter rest until they arrived at Rivendell.


	4. Healing

As the three elves and a man and a girl topped the last ridge concealing Rivendell from sight, the sun shone brilliantly off the silver palisades and glittered of the sparkling river.

It was around noon when they finally entered the gates. Lord Elrond strode out to greet them. Immediately, he noticed something different about the group. Estel, Elladan, Elrohir, and Legolas all seemed to be taking turns sticking to Fidelis' side. Almost as if they were escorting her. He could tell that she was road weary but thought his son's and Legolas' behavior a little over the top. One of his eyebrows elegantly rose slightly, half in question, half in amusement.

"Welcome home, Fidelis," he said, deciding to ignore the mothering of the four for the moment.

Fidelis smiled like she hadn't smiled in weeks and said, "I'm glad to be back."

"Father-" Elladan began.

"Fidelis needs medical attention," finished Elrohir.

Elrond's half-raised eyebrow lowered itself back to its original position. That would explain why they were (s)mothering her.

Fidelis sighed, clearly irritated. "I told you that I would deal with the matter once we reached Rivendell. However, I want to take care of my horse, take a nice bath, then I'll let Elrond examine me. I told you that my injuries were not life-threatening.

This speech shocked everyone listening. Fidelis was known for her unending patience, especially with the exasperating twins. But it seemed she had reached her limit.

Lord Elrond's eyes narrowed slightly, he reassessed the state of the girl in front of him. Her once spotless, forest green tunic was covered in sand, dirt, and some stains that had been very nearly bleached out by the sun. Fidelis' eyes were slightly bloodshot and underscored by dark bags. Her chocolate hair was messy and saturated with sand. Her bow and knives had clearly suffered the same fate. At first glance, her state was acceptable from a person who had just returned from a long journey. However, upon closer inspection, it became clear that Fidelis had suffered more than normal during her travels.

Fidelis barely managed care for her horse before losing the battle of determination to the twins. She was exhausted. The pain from her wounds combined with the stress of the road, and the persistence of the twins, convinced her to accept the help that Elladan, Elrohir, Legolas, Estel, Elrond, and many other residents of Rivendell offered. As soon as she gave in Elrohir practically carried her to her room, closely trailed by the other three. When they arrived Elrond had all the necessary supplies ready to treat any kind of injury or illness.

Too tired to put up any kind of fight, Fidelis complied with Elrond's instructions with only one condition, the boys had to leave. It took a long time, some of her injuries needed to be re-stitched, others needed to be disinfected. Luckily, she had managed to avoid broken bones. In the end, she had to get seven stitches on her abdomen, three on her shoulder, and some bandages just about everywhere.

When Fidelis emerged from her room, Estel, Elladan, Elrohir, and Legolas pounced on her.

"Are you alright?" they all asked in unison.

Fidelis chuckled, "Yes, I'm fine,"


End file.
